Why are all corona announcements "leaked" in advance?

[Snog]

Who is leaking everything and why does the government think it's not an issue?

If Iris the government itself responsible for the leaks surely this undermines faith in the government?

The government is responsible for the leaks alright. Its called kite flying. Leak something, see if the public accepts it or kicks off wildly. Decide whether to do the thing or alter it based on the reaction.

Because they are too chicken to do anything with out testing it first, they are poor leaders.

They always test the waters and see how their amazing well thought out plans will go down with us plebs

To test how it will play with the public and to soften the blow

Testing the waters, plus I think it means more people will watch the actual announcement to get the full version

Such a cowardly underhand way of governing

Same as pp said. It's to see how we take whatever it is their trying to sell us

It depersonalises whatever bad news Johnson announces if it's already a done deal in the public's mind. He wants to be distanced from the unpleasant initial reveal.

Didn't Boris Johnson say he did not want leaks? I think it is someone, presumably a cabinet member, (or someone close to cabinet member) who is trying to undermine the PM.

Didn't Boris Johnson say he did not want leaks?

He has to say that, to keep up the pretence that these things have been leaked without his knowledge.

Of course it's deliberate kiteflying
They use this site to do it as well

They do test things on this site. We are quite the influencers on MN you know.

Scaremongering

The government are chicken shit and like the chance to either reconsider or think up a sweetener to announce alongside it.

It’s probably when they decided it was a good idea to dangle the save Christmas carrot despite them having no business doing.

Its interesting. As capital goes supra national, with no national loyalties, and we campaign for human rights for those whose only connection to us is through media campaigns and through their exploited labour and resources, governments have to do two contradictory things; appear to promote freedom, whilst keeping control of its own citizens. Its driven to use means that you would only otherwise witness under a state of exception. We are of course now living in a state of exception, under threat. The state is under threat, as is the economic system that gives the nation state its purpose. But the state can not be seen to use force, so it must constantly test how much it can direct its citizens without resorting to force. But in the final analysis the state will use violence. However, this for me is the bit that puzzles me. Why do we hold so much power, and yet believe we have so little? When everything starts to collapse they fear us, because there is absolutely no way they can survive without our acquiescence. To bring out the police and the Army is to admit defeat. I will follow all reasonable rational rules. I won't however do anything I am directed to do should the state see fit to use water cannons, or to use the Army to threaten violence against us. That is why they constantly test public opinion, its a tacit acknowledgement that the sovereignty ultimately rests with those they seek to control, and that we allow them to control us all the while we believe they have all the power.

Blair did it so every government since has followed the practice.

It was amusing seeing Gove go bright red on Marr a couple of months back when he was questioned about leaks.

Some of the recent threads about the possibility of schools closing in January looked as if they were planted by government kite flyers to me. "Should schools close in January?" You can't get clearer feedback than with that question.
If we're influencers, I wish they'd take notice of the many MN threads pushing for a strong public message about the importance of everyone in the country taking a vitamin D supplement every day in winter. And not the paltry, out-dated dosage recommended by the NHS either.

A Northampton MP was sacked for leaking last week.
www.google.com/amp/s/www.bbc.com/news/amp/uk-politics-55364465
They discovered him via a Collette Rooney sting. All recipients got the same letter, but with slightly different wording to each one. He published the government letter online.

I noticed this right at the beginning (and as it continued) and presumed it has something to do with change management. People don’t like new things, so get it out, it becomes somewhat familiar and is accepted more easily.

There are both deliberate & unplanned leaks.

November Lockdown leak was unplanned; heavily hinted that Cummings or someone in his team wanted to nudge govt into a decision sooner (wanted lockdown sooner). DC/his minions are very self-important, thought they knew best. They got sacked.

Other leaks are meant as trial balloons for policy that will proceed anyway.

I don't get that interested, tbh.

They do it so everyone on MN can have a go at them

Test the water basically. If everyone has a meltdown, they don’t do it.

One of the reasons why the government’s response is such a shit show is that they’re incapable of making unpopular decisions. We get the decisions they think are popular, rather than the decisions we actually need - Christmas being a case in point.

@ElephantWhaleRabbit

Test the water basically. If everyone has a meltdown, they don’t do it.

One of the reasons why the government’s response is such a shit show is that they’re incapable of making unpopular decisions. We get the decisions they think are popular, rather than the decisions we actually need - Christmas being a case in point.

Its populism in politics, and where these puppets no longer have integrity or any conviction. We are asked to trust their judgments, when they themselves are incapable of making judgements. That is what you get when these puppets out the front are there out of their own self interest, and because the state and the media deem them the most pliable to their bidding. Boris has not one independent thought in his head. Its empty. He isn't driven by conviction, he is driven by a need to be popular and a need to maintain power for the sake of having power, whilst those he represents (not us) are happy to have this shuffling buffoon because ultimately all that is wrong (ie their vested interests) are hidden to us by this clown that appears inept. How can you claim something is both ignorant and scheming?

@MiniTheMinx I do think that us plebs have true power, if people were to rise up the government would be lost.